It has not been disclosed how many games 24-year-old O'Neil, who joined Pompey as a schoolboy, must play to activate the full payment.

But agent John Mac told Portsmouth News: "Things had to be restructured between the clubs, but it didn't mean Middlesbrough paying less than £5million for him. In fact they will end up paying slightly more on appearances.

"If they had offered less than £5million Gary would have been sent back - simple as that. There is no way he would have gone for less than £5million because Pompey had three other clubs prepared to pay that amount."

Middlesbrough chairman Steve Gibson has told manager Gareth Southgate that he expects the club to be back in Europe on a regular basis over the next five years.
Boro enjoyed two successful seasons in Europe from 2004 to 2006, which concluded with them making the Uefa Cup final, which they lost to Sevilla.

Now, after seeing Boro fail to make it back into Europe for a second season in succession, Gibson wants to see his side team back amongst the continent's elite.

"Over the next five years we want to win another cup and we want to be in Europe more often than not," Gibson told a fans' forum.

"We want to make the next 10 years more successful than the last 10. We want to continue making and breaking new records for the club."

Despite spending over £20million themselves this summer, Gibson says Boro will never go beyond their means.

"I'm not concerned with what other clubs do, but right now, we are in 12th place in the Premier League and that tells me we are competing," he said.

"We have spent £23million on new players this summer. When I'm asked about the club, everything seems to be about money, money, money.

"But we have so much else going for us, like the Academy. You don't have to spend millions on players. Players like Julio Arca and Luke Young are proving great value for money."

Middlesbrough chairman: No choice but to sell Yakubu
tribalfooball.com - September 05, 2007

Middlesbrough chairman Steve Gibson insists he had no choice but to sell Yakubu Aiyegbeni to Everton.
Gibson told a BBC Tees Forum: "The one thing which cannot happen at a club is when you have a player who is unsettled to the point where it affects his performances on the field.

"That's the position where we'd got to with Yakubu. Emotionally he was struggling, and at Wigan he gave a performance that was below his own standards.

"When that happens, it's the right time to get the best possible deal for the club."

Middlesbrough's young defender David Wheater has revealed he has been given a new nickname by his team-mates.

The 20-year-old Redcar-born player has been a revelation at the heart of the club's defence in the absence of the injured Emanuel Pogatetz, and as a result, has been dubbed 'Pally' after former Boro, Manchester United and England star Gary Pallister.

Wheater, currently on international duty with England's Under-21s, told the club's official website: "Stewie Downing has texted me and called me 'Pally', so I think it's stuck in the dressing room.

"I can't say I've seen a lot of him play, but from what I have heard, he was a fantastic player - and I wouldn't mind all of those trophies, that's for sure."

Mornin', Raymondo. Rushed home from work yesterday to play 5-a-side. Now, after a fitful nights sleep, I'm aching to buggary and I've got to go to work again soon, but enough of that jibber-jabber. I'd love a cup of tea if it's no trouble. Milk and one, squire.

Tony McMahon hopes to press for a first team return after making a comeback for Middlesbrough in their reserves clash with Liverpool this week.
The young fullback has had no luck during the past two years but did well on his comeback match.

He was up against the lively Argentine left winger Sebastian Leto but made it a highly competitive battle.

McMahon told the Evening Gazette: "All I want to do is to get back playing football again.

"I feel quite fit and now I have to keep pushing on and challenge Luke Young.

"I am a determined lad. I want to play in the first team.

"The manager has brought players in and it's right that he should look for competition for places.

"It's up to me to play well enough to give the manager a problem."

McMahon also thanked team-mates Robert Huth and Jonathan Woodgate, plus fitness expert Nick Allamby, for their contribution in helping his return to action.

He said: "They've all been brilliant to me and helped me to get through it and get fit again."

Gibson calls for return of Boro fans
Middlesbrough chairman Steve Gibson has called on the club's followers to return to the Riverside after losing 5,000 fans during recent times.

Gibson has seen attendances drop despite former boss Steve McClaren guiding the Teessiders to their first major trophy and into two European campaigns in the last three years.

Now he is urging those supporters who have turned their backs on the club to buy into new boss Gareth Southgate's vision for the future having challenged him to secure another trophy and regular European action in the next five years.

Speaking at a BBC Tees fans' forum alongside Southgate, Gibson said: "If somebody had said to me four years ago when we had average gates of 32,000, 'You will win the Carling Cup, you will have two excellent journeys into Europe, you will get to a UEFA Cup final and you will lose 5,000 fans', I would have said they were crackers.

"But it's happened and we have to deal with it - and when I say we, I mean all of us.

"Gareth is doing his bit, he is doing it with the players, he does it in the way he conducts himself.

"As a town and as fans, we have to support this manager, this man, his players and the club."

He told the forum: "It's not about the people who were in the ground on Saturday because they were tremendous.

"I want you to go out and drag those in who should be here."

A crowd of just 22,920 saw Boro beat Birmingham 2-0 in the Premier League at the weekend as the club continued its purge on illegal satellite broadcasts of its home games in pubs and clubs.

However, Gibson admitted the Teessiders appear to suffer more acutely than neighbours Newcastle and Sunderland.

He said: "It is something we do intend to clamp down on. We cannot say too much, but it is something we will take action on and are taking action on.

"St James' Park is still full and the Stadium of Light is quite full, so why does it affect us more than them?"

Gibson, who admitted looking into the possibility of trying to bring Brazilian superstar Roberto Carlos to the Riverside in the future, has backed his manager's attempts to provide a more exciting brand of football this summer by handing his £23million to spend on new signings following the departures of strikers Mark Viduka and Ayegbeni Yakubu.

He is confident the club is continuing to move in the right direction and remains hugely ambitious for the future.

He said: "Gareth has got his head at this football club. I don't sit on his shoulder talking to him because I believe in what he is trying to achieve here.

"What we have done is we have tried to reduce the age of the squad, increase the passion of the squad, increase the pace of the squad and the technical ability of the squad to a level that allows us to perhaps nick another trophy in that five years, get us into Europe perhaps more often than we are not and to entertain the fans.

"That's our vision for the next five years. If we look back over the last 10 years, we have had 10 years of Premier League football - that has not fulfilled our ambition, it has fed our ambition.

"We want to achieve in the next 10 years more than we achieved in the last 10 years. That's what we would hope to do.

"The cups are our realistic opportunity, but we have set standards. We have won a Carling Cup, we have had two runs in Europe and our highest ever position, seventh, in the Premier League.

Morning Raymondo...Bright and Sunny on the Riviera. A disappointing day yesterday for the Tykes but when we lossed the toss it was on the cards that they would get a bundle on an excellent batting strip. We will just have to hope that we can knock over the tail end this morning and then bat extremely well and score quickly and give ourselves a chance to force an unlikely win. One thing is certain we cannot afford to let Sussex win this game for that would be just about the end for us..the usual please.